Lifestyle Recovery Milestones

[uppa]

art by uppa | approved by dave

context (tw)

As of writing up this post, I'm closing in on two years clean from self harm, as well as two years recovered from anorexia. This thread is a tribute to my mom, dad, brothers, Peyton, Kate, Sydney, Camille, Ady, Gwen, and everyone else who's shared this journey with me. :)

What is this thread?
This thread is a space for people to celebrate their recovery and have themselves heard. It could be a week without smoking, a month without self-harm, a year sober, etc. The point of this thread is to foster an environment for people to share their progress, and hopefully inspire others to keep going. You may be as reserved or as bombastic as you like; share only to the degree you're comfortable with.

Rules:

• No bummers! The purpose of this thread is not to vent or post solely about the "valleys" of your recovery. Please try to keep discussion overall positive and uplifting.
• Treat topics with respect. Don't haha react vulnerable posts.
• If you feel as though your post could trigger others, through mention of the amount, degree, or means of a destructive behavior, please use a trigger warning. Generic mentions of sensitive topics will not require a trigger warning.
• No memes, flaming, or spam, obviously.
• Although it pains me to exclude anyone's experience, please refrain from discussing recovery from addictions of a sexual nature, as per global rules.

Addendum:

• Here's a list of helplines that I stole from the mental wellness thread.
• Thanks all for your time <3

 

[mushamu]

I recently stopped self harming as much and started identifying more subconscious ways that I self harm. The main form of self harming was using substance abuse (video games) to numb out my emotions but as recovery went on I realized that overworking myself and isolation are also ways I self harm myself.

One thing I tried was that every time I self harmed using video game addiction, I would draw a line on my face with a big black sharpie to "show" the damage it causes me. I figured that it shows the exact affect of the behavior (much like taking money out of a wallet does compared to spending it on a card).

I'm glad since it shows that I'm making progress and it gives me more "levels" to combat the final boss which is my borderline personality disorder.

 

[uppa]

I recently stopped self harming as much and started identifying more subconscious ways that I self harm. The main form of self harming was using substance abuse (video games) to numb out my emotions but as recovery went on I realized that overworking myself and isolation are also ways I self harm myself.

I'm glad since it shows that I'm making progress and it gives me more "levels" to combat the final boss which is my borderline personality disorder.

Self-harm and sabotage come in many forms, I'm glad you've been able to identify some that you deal with. I like the "level" metaphor, recovery is very incremental in that way. Thank you for sharing. <3

 

[Theia]

cw: self-harm

I'm two months clean from self-harm as of this past Sunday. At my lowest points, I would physically hurt myself just to feel anything at all and to punish myself for everything I've done wrong (which, in my mind, is just about everything). This isn't the first time I've been clean for a while after a relapse and there's a good chance that it won't be the last, but all I can do is my best to keep fighting the urges.

Lots of love to anyone going through anything similar. Hope everyone is able to find peace and recovery <3

 

[uppa]

Today marks two years clean from self harm, as well as just over two years into my recovery from anorexia. It's hard to give words of concrete advice, since everyone's situation and mental state is entirely unique. To avoid spouting both generic and useless advice, I'm gonna take the opportunity to reflect on my own experience. Please take away what you will:

tw: self harm discussion

There's many facets to why people are ashamed of their self-harm scars. For most they're like a permanent reminder of the absolute lowest point in their lives, like a parting shot from their past selves so that they can never really 'look' or 'be' recovered. They take decades to fade, and most will look similar at a month old to a few years old. There's an inherent shame to having scars as well, like you're unwillingly broadcasting your struggles to anyone who sees you. It can be hard to overcome this, but not impossible. I'm not a self-actualized therapist/prophet, but I'd at least like to share my experience on how I became 'okay' with my scars. At a certain point, after the stress of seeing my scars every day had subsided to a simmering discomfort, I thought about why they happened, and the ways in which they had altered my life. It's hard to explain in full while sparing the details of my situation, but I concluded that a timeline where I have no scars doesn't guarantee a happier and healthier 'me'. Scars are a tradeoff I had made, a butterfly effect that contributed to the circumstances of my recovery. I realize that framing it this way is a bit naive, but I think any rationalization that helps you accept yourself more is valid. I am a human body, and my scars were simply another crossroads that have altered my life, for worse and for better. Let us all live in the moment, and appreciate the path we've taken when we can.

 

[Eledyr]

Cw: depression, suicidal thoughts

I'm slowly but surely recovering from a period of depression. It's hard to evaluate how long it has been, but it's started approximately in September. At my worst I was feeling like I was worth nothing, and that my life was absolutely meaningless. I thought there were no hope. Doing my everyday life was very difficult. But through medications and lot of help from my family, I've passed through this. It's not the first time I'm depressed, and even if it's incredibly hard, I know things will be better. I'm stronger than my disease.

Love and support to anyone having a similar disease. It's an incredibly nasty one, and even if the easy path is to forfeit, life is worth living it. I hope you all find your own way to recover